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tv   Journal  KCSMMHZ  November 13, 2012 2:30pm-3:00pm PST

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>> this is dw in berlin. you are watching me "journal." >> coming up in the next half- hour, the eu and imf clash over how long greece should be given to reduce its debts. >> america's commander in afghanistan under investigation after new revelations in the cia sex scandal. >> in cairo, eu foreign ministers and members of the arab league discuss the syrian crisis.
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the lenders in charge of patching up the eurozone have gone head to head in a very public disagreement on the best way to deal with grease. >> at a meeting in brussels, the head of the imf and -- the heads of the imf and eurozone clashed over when greece should reduce its debt. >> but they did at least agree on a few things -- above all the grece could have at least two years to cut deficit. >> it is a question of how much progress greece can realistically be expected to make in a particular amount of time. >> greece's international lenders were playing down their differences the morning after the clash over athens' debts. the imf wants greece to achieve its lower ratio by 2020 while the eu foreign ministers want to allow the country two more years. >> there's no disagreement between the imf and the euro group, but the way forward is difficult.
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even if we agree on a target date, we have to figure out how to get there. >> the group's help long negotiations of the matter, but the head of the imf remains adamant that greece should stick to the original timetable -- the groups held long negotiations over the matter. >> there is a more or less good probability that we will move the target. i was trying to express myself in such a way that you could not understand what i was saying. >> in our view, the appropriate time table is 120% by 2020.
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>> the disagreement is not only about giving greece more time to get its house in order but also how the costs of an extension could be paid for. some 33 billion euros extra. >> there is no way the funds for the bailout program can be increased. we must find another way to close the gaps. it is not a trivial matter, but it is not impossible either. >> the euro group is holding a special meeting next week to further discuss athens' financing needs. >> our correspondent has been following this from brussels, and he joins us now. is it clear yet if an increase will get this next tranche of bailout funds it is waiting for? >> it is not clear. after today's spat, greece is hoping that on the occasion of the next meeting, that could be cleared, but the problem is that some national governments -- sorry, some national
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parliaments, will have to approve this first. the timetable is tight. it is very difficult, and it was not at all clear from this meeting, which was dominated by the dispute between international monetary fund and the europe group ministers, just how quickly they could do that, but greece is saying it will be out of money, bankrupt, by friday november 16. they have got to raise money on international markets somehow, and they need the backing or at least the promise of that extra bailout to do that. it is a bit of a puzzle. >> how big is this difference of opinion we've been hearing about? >> big. what happened earlier today or late last night reflected the frustration in the international monetary fund at the constant pushing off, as it is seen, of final decisions. in other words, you can see in a couple of years greece beginning to reduce its debt, and imf --
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increase agreed to that -- the imf and greece agreed to that. when they wanted another couple of years, she saw red, really. she rolled her eyes and does not want to book any more delays because there's been years of indecision, as they see it at the imf. >> briefly, that's not the only dispute you had in brussels. also something to do with the eu budget, a problem there. >> it is very complicated. basically, they want 6.8% in budget spending next year. ministers say 2.79% and not a penny more. tonight, europe -- euro mp's had decided not to take part. on all economic fronts, europe is in crisis. >> a lot to watch their. thanks very much for the update.
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>> let's move to the markets now. investors did not have much to celebrate this tuesday. our correspondence sent us this report from the frankfurt stock exchange. >> the discussion in brussels about greece weighed on the general mood of the markets, even though there was a bit of a recovery towards the end of the trading day, but investors remain concerned about greece and about the way that the euro debt crisis is being sold -- solved. so all this, there were more reasons for investors to be bad tempered, for example, a dismal quarterly earnings report for the german utility, which came along with a profit warning. and there was the zed, the center for european economic research, which presented investor sentiment, which can lie and much less -- much worse than anticipated, especially the outlook of investors on to the future, much more negative than anyone here had anticipated.
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the dax ended the day just barely up at 7169. europ stoxx 50 closed 0.75 -- closed 0.75% up. the euro trading at $1.2709. it was one of the first newspapers to be published in germany after the end of the second world war, but it has filed for insolvency. >> that is right. the media group which owns the paper said that after years of losses, there was no chance of returning it to profit. they blamed a decline in advertising and sales revenues for the closure. the prospect of widespread strikes and travel chaos during the holiday season has been averted after german airline lufthansa it ended a wage dispute with its cabin crew. >> under the terms of the deal beginning next year, lufthansa
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will be raising wages for cabin staff by 3.9%. the airline also guaranteed there would be no layoffs until the end of 2014. >> the german government wants to boost the country's technology sector. to get some ideas on how to do that, it has invited some of the nation's top i.t. firms foreign annual," summit. >> the tech industry in germany faces fierce challenges abroad. >> but it is growing, especially in berlin. damage of the applications are up and around the globe -- >> job applications are up around the globe. >> we get a lot of applications from san francisco of people that already want to move to berlin and what to look for the perfect company to look at. >> 80% of all applications we
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get are probably from people who live abroad. we also have applications from people who work at google now and facebook. >> it was not long ago that they themselves were newcomers in berlin. the german capital has long since become the european hub for tech startups. more than 100 companies are launched each year, and the past four years, they have created 10,000 jobs. trade fairs bring together investors and creative minds. they have become a gold mine for talent scouts from major i.t. companies seeking qualified staff both in germany and% abroad. data to the u.s. now, where revelations have emerged in the scandal that caused the downfall of the head of the cia, general david petraeus -- >> to the u.s. now, where revelations have emerged in the scandal that caused the downfall of the head of the cia. >> general john allen is alleged
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to have had inappropriately to one of the women involved in the scandal. >> he was due to become nato's supreme commander in europe, but that appointment is now on hold. meanwhile, even more details of the scandal concerning general petraeus are coming to light. >> former cia head david petraeus said the affair lasted from december 2011 until four months ago. paula broadwell co-offset a biography on petraeus and made multiple trips to afghanistan -- co-authored a biography on petraeus. investigators are reported to have found that she had access to sensitive documents about afghanistan. agents searched her family home in north carolina on monday night. but there is another high-level figure involved. the pentagon is now investigating general john palin, the palinisaf -- general
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john allen, the current isaf commander in afghanistan. >> general allan is entitled to due process in this matter. in the meantime, the secretary has asked the president, and the president has agreed, to put his nomination on hold until the relevant facts are determined. >> and white house spokesman says president barack obama was surprised by the petraeus revelations -- a white house spokesman said. they come just as the administration heads into its second term. >> for more on this developing story, we are joined by our washington correspondent. how serious are the allegations against general allan? what sort of wrongdoing is the alleged to have been involved in? >> it is very serious. there were -- there is an investigation going on. there were some 30,000 pages of
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e-mails between the top commander in afghanistan and this lady in florida, mrs. kelly, and you really do not know exactly what is in those e- mails, but according to the american media, they say that there is -- that those are inappropriate communication. just a couple of minutes ago, he said that there was no affair. nevertheless, there was a plan that general allan would become the new supreme -- the nato supreme allied commander in europe, and i think this is not going to happen -- that general allen would become the new nato supreme allied commander. >> water the implications of this for the obama administration -- what are the implications? >> i think it is very bad. the fbi investigation about petraeus and this affair that was going on for months, and the white house is saying they learned about this a couple of
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days ago, last wednesday. do you think the majority of american people believe that? i do not think so. obama will give tomorrow his first press conference after the election, and he would like to focus on the economy, but i think the majority of the journalists will just as more about petraeus and about general allen. the cia had eight directors in the past seven years, and it is bad for the cia, bad for the military, and bad for president obama. >> thanks for that. >> in germany, greenpeace is calling for a fresh start in the search for a long term dump for nuclear waste. >> the environmental group says a new commission should be set up to consider a range of possible sites with maximum input from the public. it says that after years of controversy, the government should give up on the old salt mine that has been the longest running candidate. >> research into weather this
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underground site is the right place to store nuclear waste started 35 years ago. the protests against it are just as old. greenpeace says it is time to change tack and that the search for a storage site for nuclear waste should start from scratch with greater involvement by ordinary people. >> a permanent storage site can only work if there's a broad consensus and acceptance among the people. you do not achieve that it make decisions behind closed doors. >> that is what greenpeace is accusing the environment minister of, but he says that a solution needs to be found soon. >> i am still interested in the consensus. concrete steps are not yet decided, but we are running out of time. >> greenpeace wants to explore six underground locations containing clay, granite, and salt rock.
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>> we will be back in one minute with more news. >> that's right. stick around.
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>> welcome back. the leader of syria's new oppoition coalition has called from political recognition from europe and special weapons to defeat the syrian regime. >> the common comes as eu foreign ministers and members of the arab league meet in cairo to discuss the serious crisis -- the comment comes. but there's further troop that the syrian president's troops do not intend to give up -- but there was further proof that the syrian president's troops do not intend to give up. >> human rights workers say more
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than 100 people were killed across syria on tuesday. in cairo, eu foreign ministers have been meeting with representatives of the arab league. one key item on the agenda is agreeing on a common position on the united syrian opposition group formed last weekend -- the syrian national coalition. >> the -- germany welcomes that the international opposition in syria agrees on a rule of law and for pluralism. >> in principle, the eu is willing to support the coalition against the syrian leader, but the foreign ministers are concerned weather divisions between different opposition factions could reemerge. >> we want to see in practice that the syrian opposition or the coalition that has now been assembled is as inclusive of -- as possible of opposition groups and of all communities in
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syria, and we want to see that they have support inside syria. >> the key u.s. and arab league representatives also warned opposition leaders that they could only be successful if that offered all syrians a genuine alternative -- the eu and opposition -- the eu an arab league representatives warned opposition leaders. >> what kind of impression did it make? >> it was interesting. the german foreign minister made a remark after he met the new leader of the syrian opposition, and he said he was very impressed by him, and especially impressed about his affirmation of pluralism and rule of law and democracy. >> what are the prospects of this group being officially recognized by the eu and the arab league? >> it seems there's no free ticket for recognition.
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the arab league was already more careful, saying that they accept them as the main partner to talk to in syria. europeans were even more reluctant, saying that they want to first see who is going to join the opposition, what is going to be their vision, how they can control the situation on the ground -- these are all open questions. they just want to see how this new opposition is going to perform. >> tell us just what this opposition grouping wants. what are their main demands? >> three words -- recognition, money, and weapons. i think that's what they are expecting from outside. >> thank you very much for that update. >> 80 years after his death, palestinian authorities are
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exhuming the body of yasir arafat. >> workers have begun uncovering the grave of the palestinian leader. the exhibition may last two weeks as the body is covered under layers of concrete. he died in a french military hospital in 2004 of undetermined causes. in july, a swiss institute found his personal effects contained at normal levels of radioactive plutonium, and suspicions persist that he may have been poisoned. >> in portugal, workers are gearing up for a general strike on wednesday to protest austerity measures. >> portugal past major cuts to pensions, unemployment benefits, and social services in exchange for its bailout from the eu -- portugal passed major cuts. >> but not all workers want to take to the streets and protests
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on wednesday. here's more. >> almost everything is made by hand at this shoe factory. the company is successful because most of their production is sold to customers abroad to customers in england and the united states. though there is plenty of work here, about half of the company's 190 employees will probably go on strike. the factory foreman cannot understand it. he plans on working through the strike. >> we are doing fine in this factory. we do not have any reason to strike. we have plenty of orders, and the workers are in good shape. we have been paid on time for the past 20 years -- 28 years, but the strike is probably justified when you look at portugal on the whole so that things can improve. >> there is calm before the
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storm. union leaders are calling for a national strike to support what they say are unacceptable conditions for workers. >> wages have been frozen, but the cost of living goes up every day. petrol, natural gas, and electricity are all more expensive. everything you need to live is getting so we cannot afford it. >> back in the shoe factory, you have to look hard to find evidence of a bad economy. a few months ago, a new warehouse was built at the cost of about 1 million euros. last year, the company had about 55 million euros in sales. the owner, whose father founded the factory, says the strike is bad news. >> we have to rebuild the economy of our country. we have to work harder, the way germany did after the second
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world war, 14 or 15 hours a day. we are in a crisis, so let's roll up our sleeves and tackle it. >> many of the people who work here support the trade unions simply on principle, so they plan to take to the streets on wednesday with other workers who are not as fortunate. >> there's been another setback for one of the world's most ambitious solar power projects. >> the german company says it is pulling out because of high costs. the group aims to import 1/5 of europe's electricity from solar and wind parks in north africa and the middle east by 2050. the company says it will not renew its involvement at the end of the year. >> in germany, hearings have begun in the country's first case of a woman suing for compensation over faulty breast implants. >> the case is being closely
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watched because it could set a precedent for future claims. 5000 german women are known to have received implants from dubious manufacturers. >> she's exhausted after a four- hour hearing, but she still in the fight. >> people warned me not to file a complaint. should say -- this that i was crazy -- they said i was crazy. >> the mother of three has suffered chest pain and numbness since she received breast plants like these in 2007. she blames the french manufacturer for fitting them with sheep, industrial grades silicone. the boss is still awaiting trial, but the company itself has gone bankrupt, so she is also suing the german supplier of silicone and the german+ testing institute of the implants. she also is pointing a finger at her surgeon, who she says told turn the -- she had nothing to worry about. the surgeon's lawyer said the
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empress were certified and that she had been advised the implants would not last forever. >> were happen the documentation supports what we've been saying. of course, a doctor cannot document more than what he has told a patient. >> the court says it also found no negligence -- no evidence of negligence on the part of the german manufacturer. the case could affect thousands of women in germany. >> to sports now, and the last major tennis tournament of the year came to an end last night at the world tour finals in london. >> ending the year as it began, at the top of the world rankings. he lost the top spot in july but reclaim it just last week. >> in last night's final, he got his revenge. >> the two best players in the world played out a thrilling contest.
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the swiss masters started in top form, winning the first nine points -- but he did not give up. he fought back and took the lead. the high-quality tennis continued. but the serb eventually triumphed, 8-6. in the second set, federer again stormed into the lead. once more, his opponent should his resilience, winning three games in a row. he took his first match point to finish the contest and confirm his second world title. >> it has been the best possible way to finish another remarkable season that i am very proud of. i want to thank my team for being with me on a daily basis. >> last week, he regained his
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world no. 1 ranking with victory in london. the 25-year-old underlined his status as the world's best player. >> floods in italy have claimed the lives of four people and devastated several regions in the center and north of the country. >> in tuscany, three people were killed when their car fell off a collapsed bridge. another man died on monday after the river flooded in the area. more than 100 people were forced to flee their homes. local officials have called for the army to assist with the rescue effort. that is all for now. thanks for watching. >> don't forget, you can find more on our website at www.dw.de. see you soon. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.og--
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